She's Back !!

Did you miss me?  If not, that's okay. I try not to sweat the things that I cannot change. I had to cover for a few pregnancy leaves at work, so something had to give. And that something was not going to be my job, my husband, my life, etc. So I gave up linking to my favorite over 40s blogs. If you are still interested in me, you can go back and see what I have been up to over the summer and also see our trip to Europe. Sorry for the interruption, but I didn't forget you all. There was no time.

With that said, here is what I have been wearing over the past few days. We will start with last Wednesday, October 3rd.

This combo is a pair of Ann Taylor slacks, an intarsia sweater from INC and a blazer from White House Black Market.

I wore this because it was sprinkling and I wanted to sport my new silk blanket scarf from Gucci that I got as a souvenir from London. The fleur de lis necklace came from New Orleans. I may have already shown this outfit in my last post, but I vow to do better. Anyhow, it's a nice scarf and really big.

The next day, Thursday, October 4th, had me sporting a retro outfit. You see, one of our data analysts wants to go totally 80s for Halloween, so I dug out three denim outfits for her to try on. In doing so, I found this Adolfo linen blazer with huge shoulder pads.

I wore it with black ponte pants from Express and a black turtleneck sweater.

The pizzazz was in the extras - enamel Fleur de Lis pin, LV lock pendant and Louis Vuitton neck tie.

On Friday, October 5th, I wore a dress that I got at Goodwill. For our annual Patient Safety Fair, I went as an alligator, so I needed green shoes. I went to Goodwill to get them. I saw this dress, all wrinkly and sad, for $5. For the price of a beer, I was down to gamble. It turned out great, after a wash and a press.

On top, my heavy jersey warm up jacket from Bloomingdale's. Such a nice jacket !!!

The accessories include a vintage 80s cord belt (I know because I bought it back then) and a gob of sapphire and diamond jewelry.

Onto today, Monday October 8th. This adorable shift dress is by Philosophy de Alberta Ferretti. It's so cute - it has a tie neck that hangs down in the back, it's roomy and the flounce is nice and deep.

I am still experiencing a hosiery shortage - since today is Indigenous People's Day, we didn't get mail, and my Silkies order did not come as expected. So I wore the swiss dot hose again. Don't worry, I washed them.

My long tassel rope is from Paparazzi Accessories - it's a home based business that my friend's daughter operates. The pieces are each $5 - the quality is not great, but they are trendy and good enough for day to day wear.

So that is my great return. Here are the links of sweet ladies who were considerate enough to keep inviting me to their linkups during my hiatus, plus Patti, because she is awesome. I hope this will once again become my new normal.

www.pinksole.com, www.northwestblonde.com, www.lizzieinlace.com, www.ohmyheartsiegirl.com, www.shelbeeontheedge.com, www.threadsforthomasblog.com, www.fashionshouldbefun.com, www.highlatittudestyle.com, www.fiercelyfat.com, www.stylelixir.com, www.nancysfashionstyle.com, www.apocketfulofpolkadots.com, www.notdeadyetstyle.com.

Hide and Seek - Or Just Hide

We'll get to this cryptic title in a bit. But first, what have I been wearing this week?

On Monday, I wore a dress that I bought for last year's Thanksgiving celebration.


                                        

You may recall that I chose to wear this silk To the Max dress while knife throwing and shooting arrows at my son's ranch. I believe it is more appropriate for work.

I wore the same necklace and velvet cami underneath. I just changed up the suede boots for suede wedges this time. I like it better with the wedges.

Here is my crooked necklace. An homage to the crooked little houses of Amsterdam.

Yesterday, it was still quite warm and a little muggy. I wore a no-name polyester satin top and a scuba knit skirt.

I got a lot of compliments. I didn't feel that glam. I think it was the bright blue color that people liked. The pattern on the skirt reminds me of Organic chemistry class.

I wore my jade and lapis necklace and a faux emerald pendant.

Today, it was raining when I left for work. Hooray !!! I wore some brown trousers from Ann Taylor, an intarsia sweater from INC and a tan blazer from White House Black Market.

Around my neck, I draped my new Gucci scarf that I got in London. My fleur de lis necklace is from New Orleans. The scarf is huge. Since I'm a geek, I carried my identically matching Gucci Boston bag.

Now for the Hide and Seek. We gave Pandi a nice big rawhide twist as a "welcome home from the vet" present. For a few hours, she was content to lay beside her treasure.

Then she apparently wanted some extra security, so she buried it in her crate. She goes in there sometimes. I don't know what she does in there.

 After checking to be sure the coast was clear, she snuck out. When I got home from work, the bone was gone. I asked Doc where  she put it, and he said that she was walking around with it in her mouth for quite a while.

After searching around and turning over several pillows, I spied something in the basket where I keep my bills.

Aha!!! She even crunched up some notepads to conceal her prized possession. It can stay there until she decides to move it or chew it.

As far as the Just Hide, once again I am moaning about my stupid age spots. Our administrative department at the hospital gave me a generous gift card to Burke Williams Day Spa. Since I am not a massage person, I elected to get products.

Here is the haul.

Aren't these shea butter soaps beautiful? And they are large.

For my spotty claws, I chose this Handprint Hand Serum. It's for slow aging, but I am hoping for reverse aging.

I also got the H2V Beyond Hydrating Tightening Masque. I haven't used it yet.

And erase serum with kojic acid and hydroquinone to lighten facial pigmentation. You can feel the tingling with this one.

The soap packaging also makes my toilet tank less yucky and dreary. Doc and I have separate bathrooms (the key to a happy marriage) so I am free to add girly accents to my all white lair.

And that's all for today - let's hope it rains a lot tonight as predicted !!!

Fall Update - Flowers, Fragrance and Fashion

We will go in the order of the title. Flowers first. As you all know, I like to keep my flower beds seasonally updated. For Fall 2018, I once again went with mums, the quintessential fall flower.

You can see that I also replaced our basil plant. All the new plants got stuffed into the MBZ SLK for the ride home.

Left porch:

Right porch:

Clump and herb garden:

Front shelf:

All trimmed and pruned and pretty !!!

Next we have the fragrance category. First, our September Birchbox:

From top to bottom:
1) ittse Pearl Eyeshadow in Metamorphosis
2) Avene Cleanance Gel Cleanser - love the face cleansers !!
3) thisworks Deep sleep Pillow Spray - lavender and chamomile to relax me into slumber
4) Number 4 Jour d'Automne Smoothing Balm for my frizzy crazy mop of hair
5) Chella Eyebrow Pencil in Tantalizing Taupe

Next, my Ipsy bag. It has eyelashes on it, and during my European trip, I lost a few, due to the crappy state of my mascara after 10 hours of pressurization. That always seems to happen on the plane.

Here's what I got, from top to bottom:

1) The Creme Shop Double Cleanser - it removes makeup and cleanses. I tried it already and it is super creamy and luxe. It reminds me of Origins Checks and Balances - that is one that I really love.
2) Elizabeth Mott Thank Me Later Mattifying Face Primer
3) doucce Cheek Blush
4) City Limits Lush Eyeshadow in Fire and Ice
5) Good Night by Ily Tell Blending brush

Okay, so that leaves us with the fashion. On my first day back to work, September 26th:

This gorgeous Tom Ford dress was a spurge, but I love it and will wear it for years.

It has brocade panels and mesh insets. Love. I have the perfect iridescent Austrian crystals to match, as a bonus bit of love.

I am running short on hosiery, so I got creative and wore my swiss dot pair. It turned out great, at least in my opinion.

On Thursday, September 27, I wore some Express knit slacks and a silk scarf top from Angie, a Nordstrom Rack brand. I wore a rust colored tank with lace trim underneath for butt coverage in the back. Tan knit slacks and old lady butts like mine tend to need the extra coverage.

I have a matching costume set that is amber faceted beads and burgundy round beads with crystal spacers.

Here's the bracelet and my yellow gold wedding set.

And on my right arm, my huge smokey topaz ring and a tricolor Italian gold bracelet.

Today, it was all about the comfort in my Shelby and Palmer knit dress with the side ruching detail:

This easy fit dress is a coat of many colors, so the jewelry selections are a free for all. I wore my jade and lapis necklace with a longer sapphire pendant.

On my right arm, I went with emeralds - bracelet and ring. On the left, sapphires. But when I took a picture, my hands looked so wrinkly and awful that my vanity won out and I did not post the pictures. Oh well. There is nothing new to see- I  have worn all four pieces many times over many years.

So let's see what this weekend brings to Casa de Holtzman. No plans, so we will just react to our stimuli. See you all soon!!